How it works
How Plug.Dev works
First, context on why we’re building Plug,Dev
For 10 years I built developer communities in London and Dublin across infosec and AI, from meetups and conferences to talent education programs. Through that, I saw first-hand how companies increasingly rely on trusted creators and communities for distribution, and how difficult it was to build partnerships well.
After years of working with both great and terrible sponsors, I decided to focus on how creator partnerships should work. Plug.Dev is the company I always wanted to exist. More on our “why” here.
How Plug.Dev Works
Plug helps DevTool companies find, engage, and manage creator partnerships.
DevTool companies hire Plug.Dev to represent them and run the operational side of creator programs on their behalf, from strategy and research, creator sourcing to outreach, negotiation, scheduling, UTMs, contracts, invoicing, payments, and reporting.
That allows teams to spend more time on strategy, messaging, and building creator relationships.
What Plug.Dev Does
At Plug, we run creator-led growth programs for DevTool companies. We help companies:
define program goals and ICP
identify creators that fit those goals
build and approve shortlists
manage outreach and communication
negotiate campaign details
handle scheduling, UTMs, contracts, invoicing, payments, and reporting
Our role is to make creator programs easier to run, more scalable, and less operationally heavy.
What's the process and how do influencer programs work at Plug.Dev
Our process has been the same for nearly three years.
A company shares campaign goals, ICP, content preferences, launch information, and any creator preferences.
We turn that into a creator brief.
We search across a broader database of thousands of creators to find the best matches.
We create a shortlist for the company to review.
The company approves or rejects creators.
Once the shortlist is confirmed, Plug manages outreach, communication, negotiation, scheduling, UTMs, contracts, invoicing, payments, and reporting.
The goal is simple: brands stay focused on strategy and key creator relationships while Plug handles the operational work.
What Is “The Plug.Dev Network”?
People often ask who is “in the Plug network.” There are two separate things:
1. The broader creator database
The creator database we use for campaign shortlists is much larger than the Plug network. It includes thousands of creators, not just people who have signed up to Plug.
We intentionally do not limit ourselves to “who is already on the platform” because that would reduce the quality of recommendations for a specific dev ICP in a campaign. We don’t list creators into a campaign simply because we know them or they are on the platform; we follow standard influencer marketing best practices via a database search for every campaign we run.
The main value proposition of Plug is not that “we have the network.” The network helps and is something we’re proud of, but the core campaign objective is always to find the best match for the company’s target ICP. The best creator for a campaign may already have a Plug account, or they may not. Our job is to find the right fit either way.
2. Plug.Dev accounts
Hundreds of creators/dev influencers have signed up to Plug.Dev and created accounts.
Creators sign up because they want to connect with DevTool companies.
Companies sign up because they want help running creator programs.
All creators and companies showcased publicly on the Plug website are account owners who’ve manually signed up to the Plug.Dev platform. In most cases, they have also participated in a Plug campaign or given us explicit permission to be featured on the website. We are continuing to improve how this is managed during website/design updates.
Plug.Dev does not:
represent creators
operate a creator roster
require creators to be exclusive
limit recommendations to creators already on Plug
make creators cheaper or more expensive
limit creators ability to independently represent themselves without plug
Creators remain independent. A creator with a Plug account can still work directly with brands, with other agencies, or completely independently.
Where creator shortlists come from
We work from a broader database of thousands of creators, which is standard for influencer marketing agencies and in-house teams. Plug does not build shortlists from a fixed roster, as that would limit the ability to find the best ICP match for a campaign.
Our v1 database (created by me/@neillgernon) began with manually researched creator profiles from YouTube, listed into an excel spread and has grown over time through:
previous campaigns and formal bookings
creator signups and Plug accounts
internal research
enrichment tools such as Social Blade, Phyllo, InsightIQ
When we build a shortlist, we match creators to the campaign brief and ICP. That means we may recommend:
creators who already have Plug accounts
creators we have worked with before
creators we have never worked with before
creators who have never heard of Plug
We then contact those creators directly via formal email, regardless of whether they have a Plug account. This is the same industry standard process used by most influencer agencies and in-house creator teams.
Why companies hire Plug.Dev
Companies hire Plug.Dev for:
expertise from a team that has run creator programs for leading DevTool companies
peace of mind that a large network is already here
ability to hit any dev ICP based off our broader creator database
operational support to eliminate admin overhead like contracts/invoicing etc
the ability to run creator-led growth programs at scale
Plug.Dev helps companies save time while supporting them to build long-term relationships with creators and scale creator-led growth programs that combine influencer marketing, ads, AEO, and more.
Depending on the campaign, we often help companies establish direct relationships with creators by supporting onboarding, introducing creators to DevRel teams, coordinating technical questions, and helping both sides work together effectively.